If We Live Forever
by paradoxical-enigma
Summary: KakuzuXHidan. Kakuzu survived by a hair and Hidan overpowered Shikamaru. This is what happened to the two afterwards.
1. History

Nara Shikamaru had been just another sacrifice for Jashin. Konoha mourned the loss as a whole. Chouji and Ino became more distant after that battle, as their friends could attest. And yet his plan had been so _good_. It was thought out perfectly; Hidan had merely surpassed him in strength and blocked its execution.

Uzumaki Naruto defeated Kakuzu using his wind-based rasengan, but his company left him to die on the hard earth. A spark of life still existed in him, and after everyone had left, his one beating heart pushed him to stand and exit the stage. His pride was damaged; the next generation had surpassed him, and he w_as _powerful. Nonetheless, he was alive.

Hidan couldn't find Kakuzu after taking care of the weakling who'd dared to contradict his god's judgment. He started off on his own and looked for him for the duration of a month before giving up. It was such a prize to lose, the privilege of throwing caution in the wind during battle because Kakuzu could sew him together at will. That prize was the most substantial reason for his joining the Akatsuki in the first place. Hidan never returned to take orders from Pein again.

The two went their separate ways without knowing each other's location. Hidan fought in the ensuing war alone. Kakuzu stayed out of it entirely. While Hidan didn't want to forgo the opportunity to witness and participate in the creation of such a beautiful array of deaths, Kakuzu was tired of fighting. Reflecting on his life made him feel like an old man, and he was exhausted. Over the course of the next three years, he only killed four ninja, and those died to serve as unwilling organ donors.

The war ended with Madara's defeat. The Akatsuki faded away into the pages of history. Hidan didn't feel anything for its passing; he simply continued on and fulfilled his divine mission. Once again, he was a rogue ninja, snatching his food from the earth or striking down running targets to cook and eat. He usually chose the latter; animal meat fed his stamina better than anything else. His god was the only being around to keep him company, but he didn't answer Hidan's prayers out loud. His days fell into a repetitive routine, and he quickly grew bored of them and languished in the monotony of his immortal life. He didn't usually come across travelers on his path, and so his only source of entertainment was, with only the rare exception, thoroughly mutilating his own body.

Kakuzu, contrarily, took a long vacation from the rogue lifestyle. He put his reserves of strength to the side and relaxed in the way a typical old man should have been allowed to. He shed his identity and, using a semi-permanent form of transformation jutsu he'd discovered, assumed a new face and role in life. He knew a woman, a fairly pretty brown-eyed dame, and settled down with her but refused to be married. His avarice eventually flared up again, however, and he started a scheme to swindle his neighbors out of their money. It proved effective.

Once Kakuzu's girlfriend learned about his dishonesty, she confronted him about it and they got into a fight. Kakuzu's temper succeeded his desire for stability and he murdered her in a fit of blind rage. He regretted it afterwards. She'd been a nice thing to have, and he was subsequently forced to leave the town with all the money he'd stolen.

Hidan came across Kakuzu in the forests surrounding Konohagakure four months after this happened. It was the first time the two had met since they'd fought Hatake Kakashi and his squad.

A/N: Odd place to end the chapter, I know. It's neither conclusive nor a cliffhanger. Next chapter will include dialogue.


	2. Reuniting

Kakuzu had released his transformation jutsu after leaving the village. His long brown hair was tied into a bun to keep it from getting in his way while he traveled. He carried a sack filled with ryo. While walking aimlessly through the vast country as he did daily, Hidan caught sight of his back. He approached him from behind and his suspicions were immediately clarified by the tan skin and stitching that Kakuzu's bare arms revealed.

His hand darted out and grabbed a handful of Kakuzu's hair. "I found you." Hidan gloated with a smile, quickly growing excited again for the first time in months. Kakuzu slapped Hidan's hand away, and he allowed it. He turned around to face Hidan and looked him straight in the eyes. He said nothing. Without warning, Hidan clenched his right hand into a tight fist and slugged Kakuzu in the face. His reflexes had slowed due to his years of inaction, and so he failed to dodge. He stumbled slightly from the sheer force of the impact but didn't fall.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? I thought you were dead!" That seemed the most feasible option of any since Hidan had been unable to find Kakuzu even after all his searching. "You just _left _me and the Akatsuki without warning? I'll kill you, you bastard!" Hidan was visibly seething. He'd lost something extremely important after killing Nara Shikamaru. From the moment that Kakuzu disappeared and onward, he'd been forced to exercise as much concern for his own well-being in battle as any mortal man would. Immobility could still prove his downfall even though he'd certainly survive it. It proved extremely irritating.

"**Things were complicated, Hidan.**" No, they weren't. He was sore and defeated and tired of dealing with all the complications of the shinobi lifestyle. Most of all, he was tired of dealing with Hidan's psychotic hyperactivity.

"Don't you _dare _give me that bullshit. You couldn't have at least dropped me a 'Hey Hidan, tell Pein to kill me for defecting 'cause I'm out of here'?" Kakuzu couldn't think of any way to respond to Hidan that would appease him. "You're unreal, seriously." Then they were both quiet for a good minute or two.

"I'm not letting you out of my sight again." Hidan finally disturbed the calm.  
"**I have no reason to remain your partner. It won't benefit me in any way.**"

"I don't give a shit." Hidan snapped. "You owe me. You'll use your threads to stitch me up as many times as I _want, _and if you refuse, I'll slaughter you." It was an empty threat for the most part. He'd fight the man but not kill him.

"**You still have such a subtly persuasive way with words." **

"I'll take that as an agreement."

Kakuzu's silence spoke for him. He didn't move; rather, he just stood in place, staring at Hidan distantly as though he were just a troublesome chore. He was far from pleased with the turn of events but not enough to put up much of a fight. After a while of staring at each other awkwardly, Kakuzu asked, "**Why are you so persistent?**"

"Because your threads are useful." And that was that, though there was more; the same loneliness that might have suited Kakuzu for long periods of time bored Hidan to near insanity. But he didn't mention wanting a companion just for the sake of being with. That could be construed as weakness.

Kakuzu noticed that Hidan's hair had grown out. It was a mess of grey that fell just below his shoulders, and he could tell that he'd cut it himself and done an awful job of it. His pale limbs were splattered with blood in no conceivably sensible pattern. One or two wounds still sat open on his skin, and the blood bubbling out of them glistened in the sunlight. Other than his prized rosary, he was wearing nothing but a pair of tattered black pants and typical shinobi-grade sandals. His violet eyes were just as strikingly vibrant as ever.

A/N: whoa, I finished a second chapter of a fic? Although the chapters are pretty short. But still, first time I actually continued something.


End file.
